Chapter 64: FOB Meeting - I

Hans immersed himself in reading the reports that Matilda had given to him.

The highway area was now mostly cleared of the infected. The Commander was once again astounded by the efficiency of his max-star promotion soldiers.

There’s millions of infected out there. It would be a waste of star promotion points if I do not train one more squad, eh?

Hans opened the infantry tab and navigated to the Infantry Template interface.

The five templates hovered in front of his vision, menacingly staring back at him as if they were shouting "Pick me, Commander!"

However, only one of the templates fit his current army’s needs for now.

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[ Standard Infantry Squad ]

[ Composition ]

3 Conscripts

4 Army Soldiers

1 Scout-Attack Dog Pair

1 Machine Gunner

1 Guardian GI

1 Missile Infantry

[ Estimated Training Cost: 9500 Gold ]

[ Estimated Training Time: 1 hour and 35 minutes ]

[ Begin Batch Training? ]

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"Begin," Hans did not hesitate.

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[ Gold: 12,725 (-9500) => 3,225 ]

[ Batch training initiated. ETA: 1 hour and 35 minutes ]

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After settling a small part of the manpower issue, Hans returned to reading the documents.

Additional reports included debris presence on the roads closer to the city. It was mostly caused by the Vanguards and the HMT-90s’ endless shellings.

But that was a cost Hans could easily pay.

The Engineers had noted that the roads could be repaired, but it would take time.

Several areas only needed the wreckage pushed aside. Broken vehicles, concrete barriers, chunks of walls, and structural parts scattered across the highway during the bombardment.

Those were the easier problems.

Other sections were struck badly.

Cracks spread from the shell craters into the nearby lanes. A few drainage covers had collapsed inward, exposing pipes and dark passages underneath.

One part of the road collapsed deep enough that the Engineers were forced to quickly repair it back to its working condition.

Hans tapped the report.

His army could enact a massive killing against the infected, and he could indeed easily check the first two points against hive encounters.

But the third point was as important as the other two—how should his army deal with the aftermath.

The Engineers were the restoration blocks of his army.

Roads may become unpassable if shelled for too long.

Structures may become unstable or even collapse if his army exploded things everywhere.

These were inevitable during the acts of war.

But it did not mean he was not excused of restoring the environment back to what it once was. Even if it was not perfect, at least he had to make sections passable enough for both his army and civilians alike.

Otherwise, what was the point of fighting the hive if he would cripple his own movement afterwards?

"Should I create a template for Engineers as well?" Hans sighed, resting his head over his palm. "The games made real battles overly simple indeed. And this is already a System simplifying things along the way."

He leaned back on his chair, trying to push the stress from his mind away.

The familiar knock broke his concentration.

Hans did not want to react at first, but the knocks became more frequent the longer he ignored them.

"Ah, what is it? Make it quick."

The soldier entered and saluted.

"Commander, several platoon leaders have arrived. Fairy has called them for a meeting. Should I let them in?"

That was fast, Hans smiled. "Hold them for ten minutes. The room is not ready yet. Call for five inside to help me prepare."

"Understood."

The soldier saluted and stepped outside.

Hans quickly grabbed his backpack and stored all the necessary documents, including Tyrus’s coordinates, inside the special spatial storage.

There was no reason for the entire meeting to learn about Tyrus’s hidden laboratory. At least, until Hans determines it was time to include it for today’s matters.

A few moments later, five soldiers entered the Command Room.

Hans looked around.

The room was large enough for them, but it had been arranged around his own work. His desk faced the main map, while folders and loose papers occupied most of the available surfaces.

It was suitable for one himself, but not over several officers planning for an operation.

Hans stood from his chair.

"Move the smaller tables toward the center," he ordered. "And bring enough chairs for everyone outside."

The soldiers immediately separated.

Two carried the smaller tables away from the walls and positioned them beside one another. Another pair left to retrieve chairs, while the last soldier gathered the loose reports Hans had left scattered around his desk.

"Be careful with that," Hans warned.

"Yes, Commander."

The chairs were placed around the tables, all angled enough that the officers would not need to twist their bodies just to see the map.

Hans stood from his seat and watched.

This was already more organized than what he had in mind.

Without further command from his side, the soldiers arranged the Command Room faster than he could react.

Folders were stacked according to their contents. Photographs taken by the Engineers were placed beside the road reports, while several writing materials were gathered near the center.

Hans walked around the tables.

From where he stood, everyone could see the highway leading away from the base and the northwestern roads toward Westgate.

The route looked simple on the map, but the reports on the table had told a different story.

Hans sighed. "Move my chair over here."

Two soldiers carried his chair away from the desk and placed it at one end of the tables.

Hans sat down and examined the room.

He could see everyone who would be seated.

The officers could see him.

More importantly, no one blocked the map.

"Leave some space near the back," Hans added. "Not everyone needs a chair."

"Yes, Commander."

The remaining tables were pushed against the walls. Loose materials were removed, and the center of the Command Room was cleared enough for the officers to move between their seats and the map.

Within several minutes, the room no longer looked like Hans’s private workspace.

It had become a meeting room, ready for the long discussion about the upcoming FOB.

Hans glanced toward the door.

"Let them in."